Accreditation Awarded

American Montessori Society Accreditation

Boerne, Texas, May 14, 2008 – Hill Country Montessori School has been awarded accreditation from the American Montessori Society which represents the highest level of recognition for an AMS school. Hill Country Montessori is the first Montessori school in the San Antonio metropolitan area with AMS accreditation.

AMS Accreditation is a voluntary process undertaken by schools committed to continuous school improvement. A Montessori school may not even begin the accreditation process until they have been a full AMS member for at least one year. To be a full member, all classroom lead teachers must hold Montessori credentials in the level they are teaching and submit to an AMS consultation visit every 5 years.

The accreditation process begins with a self-study and documentation process directing the school to define itself in terms of its strengths as well as areas needing improvement. This process allows the school to confirm it is what it says it is and does what it says it does. AMS accreditation further validates the quality of the school’s leadership, its comprehensive curriculum, and committed faculty and staff.

Finally, accreditation verifies the school complies with the Standards for American Montessori Schools and the following six essential qualities of the nature of Montessori education:

• The Montessori Learning Environment - A child centered environment, responsive, adaptive with individually construed competence
• Montessori’s Learning Activities - Materials, spontaneous activity, active learning, self-directed, freedom within limits, intrinsic motivation
• Montessori Learning Relationships - Mixed age grouping, social community setting, cooperation, and collaboration
• Montessori Spirituality - The child as a spiritual and moral being
• What the Montessori Teacher Is - Authoritative, observer, resource, consultant, role model

Madellaine Costello, Head of School, was very excited to learn of their achieving the accredited status. She states, “Accreditation’s importance lies not only in its ability to inform the public of your commitment to the student and their learning and growing as an individual, it also provides the faculty and staff an extra level of pride and sense of ownership that their dedication and commitment is recognized and important to the school as a whole.”

Mrs. Costello continues, “Although the accreditation process is challenging, it is such an incredible tool for making sure the school is remaining true to its mission, values and philosophies. All organizations have the tendency to get caught up in the day to day workings of keeping the organization running and can lose sight of who they are and why they ever started in the first place. To take the time and effort to ask ourselves if we are still on track and how to make sure we stay there was an eye-opener and a tremendous opportunity for growth and humility. I strongly recommend such a process to any organization as a way to ensure viability and integrity.”